Hold On To Me
by Lyralocke
Summary: Kataang, oneshot. Sometimes it helps to have something to hold on to.


_Ohmygod, you guys. NIGHTMARES AND DAYDREAMS kind of made my day. But of course, the one part that actually seemed real was a daydream. Crap._

_But I couldn't just leave it alone. I had to write, I couldn't help it. This is very simple and very short, and I kind of don't like it, but there it is._

_Takes place right after the end of NIGHTMARES AND DAYDREAMS._

_Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar_

* * *

"_Baby, you're my forever girl."_

_Aang leaned down and kissed her again._

_This was bliss. This couldn't possibly be real._

_She pulled away from him, frowning._

"_No, Aang," she said, her voice low and cold. "You tried to let me go."_

_The sky was suddenly full of heavy grey clouds. Aang's eyes widened fearfully. She looked resentfully away._

"_No, I didn't mean to!" he pleaded as the world got darker and darker. "I didn't want to let you go!"_

"_But you tried." He couldn't see her anymore. He could just hear her harsh voice in the darkness._

"_You tried to let me go, and I will never forgive you."_

Aang sat up abruptly. He looked around, confused. Oh. He was still lying on his imaginary bed made of clouds. No wait, his real bed that seemed like it was made of clouds. Katara and Sokka and Toph had made it for him.

He sighed and glanced up at the sky. It was still the middle of the night. He must not have been sleeping very long. He was sleeping, though. That was definitely a step in the right direction.

But that dream... That wonderful daydream had somehow come back and turned into a nightmare. He hadn't thought about the final chakra in ages. Apparently it was still bothering him. He sighed. Katara could never find out. He could never tell her that he had tried to let her go. It hardly mattered now, anyway. As far as he could tell, the Avatar State was lost. He sighed again. He was so tired...

"Aang?"

Stifling a yawn, he looked over. Katara was sitting up on her sleeping bag just a few yards away. His sleep-deprived mind could think of nothing but how beautiful she looked in her Fire Nation disguise with her hair down like that. He blushed at the thought. She smiled at him and got to her feet.

"Hey," she said quietly, sitting down on the edge of his makeshift cloud bed. He threw his legs over the side to sit next to her.

"Hey," he sighed.

"Don't tell me you're still having nightmares," she said gently, a warm hand moving to his shoulder. He loved her hands. They were always so warm...

"Just one," he muttered, looking down. He shook his head. "I don't know what else to do." He glanced at her. "What do you do when you can't sleep?"

Katara looked down thoughtfully. "Well… sometimes it helps when I have something to hold on to," she said slowly.

"What do you mean?"

Katara smiled faintly, and Aang recognized the look. She was recalling a fond memory. "When I was little I had a doll," she said quietly. "She wasn't very fancy or anything, just really soft and simple. I called her Holly."

"Holly the Dolly?" Aang asked, a touch of laughter in his voice.

Katara nudged his shoulder in an affectionate sort of way, giving him a glare that was offset by her smile. "Don't make fun, I was like two."

"Sorry, go on."

"Well, I couldn't fall asleep without her," Katara continued. "It just helped to have something to hold, you know? I grew out of it when I was about six, but every so often when I couldn't sleep, I'd just hold on to Holly."

"Something to hold on to," Aang said thoughtfully. "It's worth a try. What do you suggest?"

Katara looked around. "Well…" she began, humming a little as she looked. There were the koala sheep, but having been recently sheared they were no longer very cuddly. A porcupine ambled past, prompting Katara to shake her head a little. Momo was the obvious choice, but he was currently curled up with Sokka. She sighed, glancing up at the stars in thought.

"I know," she said suddenly, making Aang jump a little. "You can hold on to me."

Aang stared, his mind grinding to a halt. Oh no, he was hallucinating again.

"What?"

Katara smiled at the blank look on his face. "Hold on to me," she repeated simply.

Okay, maybe he wasn't hallucinating.

"Are you sure?" he asked hesitantly. He couldn't think of anything in the world he would rather hold on to, but he couldn't help but wonder if she had lost her mind.

"Of course, I don't bite. Come on," she laughed a little, turning and climbing to the middle of the bed. Aang numbly followed.

Moments later, he was lying beside her. This couldn't possibly be happening. He was dreaming. He had to be. He turned on his side to face her and she turned away. Hesitantly, thinking at any moment he would wake up, he reached out and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her back against his chest.

It certainly felt real.

He felt her sigh. She turned her head slightly so she could see him out of the corner of her eye.

"Better?" she whispered. He looked at her. She was blushing, and seemed unable to keep a soft smile from her face. He grinned.

"Much," he replied just as quietly. She turned back so he could no longer see her face, but he felt her take a deep breath.

"Good," she murmured.

He buried his face in the back of her shoulder, making himself comfortable, and he felt her inhale sharply in surprise. But it was only a moment before she let the breath out slowly. He tightened his hold on her.

"You're right," he said quietly. "It is nice to have something to hold on to."

He could practically feel her smiling.

"_You tried to let me go," Katara's voice said coldly from within the darkness._

"_No," Aang replied firmly, waiting for the clouds to clear. Finally, he could see her, standing before him with tears in her eyes. "I'm holding on to you."_

_She stared at him for a few seconds before racing into his arms. He caught her and held her tightly._

"_Hold on to me, Aang," she whispered._

"_Always."_

On his real bed that seemed to be made of clouds, Aang smiled and pulled Katara a little closer.

This was a very good dream.


End file.
